School closings to test CPS chief

Byrd-Bennett faces 'really tough' decisions

Chicago Public Schools CEO Barbara Byrd-Bennett sits down for an interview in her office in downtown Chicago on Friday, March 1, 2013. (Terrence Antonio James)

When the Chicago Public Schools system releases a list of schools it plans to close, possibly as early as this week, it will be the biggest test yet of how far district chief Barbara Byrd-Bennett has come in her goal of gaining the community's trust.

For some parents, Byrd-Bennett did not help her cause with comments last week that community meetings showed her that "everybody got it, that we really needed to close schools."

"I think that would be a surprise to people who attended those forums," said Julie Vassilatos, a Hyde Park mother who attended two community hearings. "I heard outrage, disbelief. Every single one of the speakers had a compelling case not to close their school, but most people felt it didn't matter. They'd be closed anyway."

But Byrd-Bennett has also developed her share of supporters, like the 60 pastors — many politically connected — who gathered at Greater Harvest Church at 51st and State streets Friday to meet with her.

"We have a mess," said the Rev. Wilfredo de Jesus of New Life Covenant. "If this is the lady that God has called to clean up this mess, then pick up a broom."

"It may impact our community, and they will, some of these closings," he said. "What we have to do when we leave this room is leave with a unified body, because the kids need that."

The district has until March 31 to release the list of schools it plans to close. The commission on school closings appointed by Byrd-Bennett determined CPS could safely close or overhaul staff at up to 80 schools. More meetings will follow, as the city vets the district's assurance that it can ensure safety for students displaced by the closings and move them to a better performing school.

Byrd-Bennett, 62, will continue to be at the center of the debate. The educator and grandmother was tapped for the post in October by Mayor Rahm Emanuel after her predecessor abruptly resigned.

After only a few weeks on the job, she won from state legislators a deadline extension on the school closing announcement, vowing to use the additional four months to engage parents and community leaders and come up with a workable plan.

At the time, she acknowledged that CPS had no credibility in the city, and that district officials needed to hear from parents before deciding which schools to target.

In 35 community hearings — conducted first by the school closing commission, then CPS — residents have loudly made their objections to the shutdowns clear. The uproar will only grow louder when the list is released. The Chicago Teachers Union has virtually guaranteed it, planning a downtown rally March 27 and holding seminars on civil disobedience acts, including "disruptions, occupations, demonstrations and arrests."

"You have to have upfront dialogue and recognize you're not going to get consensus or probably not even agreement in most cases," Byrd-Bennett said in a recent interview. "But you've got to hear and be nimble to make adjustments based on what you hear."

Byrd-Bennett said that after she read every transcript of the community meetings, she went back to aldermen, faith-based leaders and the district's community action councils to evaluate the danger in specific communities.

Still, not everyone feels they've been heard.

Bishop Tyrone Harrington of Greater Morning View Missionary Baptist Church in South Chicago, testified at a hearing last month. He said students from Lawrence Elementary on the Far South Side would have to cross three parks, each controlled by a rival gang, if the school closed. He said CPS staff took notes and wrote down his name.

Harrington said he expected the district to call him back for additional input, but he never heard from anybody.

"You need to at least experience it from a child's point of view," Harrington said. "These gangs are rivals and they have been for some time. My thing is what's the solution for that? It's just a matter of time before there's an incident."

Sources in the district said Byrd-Bennett, whom Emanuel calls "B3," is more politically savvy than her predecessor, Jean-Claude Brizard, who resigned after the teachers strike last fall. She also has plenty of experience in closing schools — when she was a schools official in Detroit, 30 were closed in a single year, and she also oversaw closings in Cleveland.

Terry Mazany, CEO of the Chicago Community Trust and a former CPS chief, said he is confident Byrd-Bennett can both determine the right number of schools to close and get the job done.

"Barbara has been dealt a difficult hand not of her creation," he said. "Some education leaders simply pay lip service that every child should have equal education opportunities, but I think she has a deep-seated conviction, a heightened sense of moral responsibility."

Byrd-Bennett continues to face deep opposition from the CTU, which doesn't want any schools to close. Union President Karen Lewis questioned how much community input will really matter in the end.